Before reading about Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, here is some background knowledge on the event at Gettysburg...
Robert E. Lee was invading the north, hoping to split the north into two sections. The Union and Confederate fources collided in and around the town of Gettysburg. From July 1-3, 1863 the battle of Gettysburg took place. This battle would prove to be a turning point in the war and the bloodiest battle. Casualties were enormous on both sides. Over 7,500 soldiers died during the battle. When the Union won and the Confederates retreated, human and horse carcasses were everywhere. The town itself had taken a huge toll. Horse carcasses were being burned in pikes and the stench was horrible. Initially the town had decided to make the families of the dead to pay for the burial, but David Wills had a better idea. He suggested a national cemetery be built, paid for by the United States of America. Wills invited many people to the dedication of the soldiers’ national cemetery, including Abraham Lincoln. On November 19, 1863 Lincoln gave his 2-minute speech. Lincoln stated that they are in a civil war testing whether any nation can survive long. He stated that we cannot let the soldiers who died there die in vain. The huge casualty number is another reason why we must win the civil war. Also that we must not let the idea of a government of the people, by the people, for the people, die from the earth. The speech was received with mixed reactions and some newspapers even criticized it. Today though it is referred to as one of the greatest American Speeches.
The 3 Appeals of Rhetoric are as follows...
Ethos» 1.) The President!
Because Abraham Lincoln was the president at the time the speech was given, many people were prone to listen to him. Since mostly anything a president has to say to his fellow citizens is important, the people gave him respect as he spoke.
2.) “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”
»By starting his speech of with a statement such as this one, Abraham Lincoln establishes his credibility as soon as possible. His background knowledge lets everyone see that he knows a lot about, and at the same time feels strongly about, the history of our country.
Logos» 1.) “Now we are engaged in a great civil war …”
2.) “We are met on a great battlefield of that war.”
»With these statements, Lincoln tells the people of Gettysburg about the current situation the country was in. The hard facts of war add more of a reason for Lincoln's persuasion to acheive a new government with freedom for the people by the people.
Pathos» 1.) "The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.”
»Using words such as "brave" men and our "poor" power, help to emphasize how the men before us were much stronger and on a much higher level than the people at Gettysburg would ever be. These words play with the audience's emotions and gives them the feeling that they will never be as worthy as the soldiers before them, yet it is their duty to live on in their names.
Rhetorical Devices ...
Polysyndeton» 1.) "...so conceived and so dedicated..."
»The deliberate use of many conjunctions, to emphasize the drawn out quality of a set of issues.
Emphasizing how even a country like like ours which is so conceived and so dedicated can endure the hardships of war.
Anaphora» 1.) "...we cannot dedicate, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow..."
»The repition of the same word or group of words at the beginnings of successive sentences, clauses, or phrases.
Hearing "we cannot" 3 times in a row really emphasizes how crucial it is that we cannot do any of these things he is mentioning. Hearing the pattern of this phrase allows the reader to anticipate and expect what comes next.
Epistrophe» 1.) "...government of the people, by the people, for the people..."
»Like anaphora, except it is the repetition of the same word or group of words at the end of sentences, clauses, or phrases.
This emphasizes that the government we have now is for us and since it is run by us we are essentially the ones that can make a change to how it is being conducted. Therefore, we must step up and do our part in acheiving a new and better nation.
Hortative Sentences» 1.) "It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this."
2.) "It is for us the living... to be dedicated here..."
3.) "It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task..."
»Hortatve Sentences state that one should do something; a command.
The last section of his speech uses hortative sentences, trying to persuade the American people. Lincoln wants the people to get on the bandwagon and join him in the duty for their new nation.
Portraying theAmerican Voice ...
President Abraham Lincoln did an excellent job in getting the American Voice across in the Gettysburg Address. America was admist the Civil War and Lincoln had concerns of creating a new birth of freedom within the nation and its government. With his credibility as the president of the United States and with his use of rhetorical devices, he persuaded America to join him in following the path that the soldiers had set before us in acheiving a free and fair government of the people, by the people, for the people.
The Gettysburg Address
written by: Abraham LincolnPresented By: Rollin C., Tania D., & Dailan S.
Before reading about Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, here is some background knowledge on the event at Gettysburg...
Robert E. Lee was invading the north, hoping to split the north into two sections. The Union and Confederate fources collided in and around the town of Gettysburg. From July 1-3, 1863 the battle of Gettysburg took place. This battle would prove to be a turning point in the war and the bloodiest battle. Casualties were enormous on both sides. Over 7,500 soldiers died during the battle. When the Union won and the Confederates retreated, human and horse carcasses were everywhere. The town itself had taken a huge toll. Horse carcasses were being burned in pikes and the stench was horrible. Initially the town had decided to make the families of the dead to pay for the burial, but David Wills had a better idea. He suggested a national cemetery be built, paid for by the United States of America. Wills invited many people to the dedication of the soldiers’ national cemetery, including Abraham Lincoln. On November 19, 1863 Lincoln gave his 2-minute speech. Lincoln stated that they are in a civil war testing whether any nation can survive long. He stated that we cannot let the soldiers who died there die in vain. The huge casualty number is another reason why we must win the civil war. Also that we must not let the idea of a government of the people, by the people, for the people, die from the earth. The speech was received with mixed reactions and some newspapers even criticized it. Today though it is referred to as one of the greatest American Speeches.
The 3 Appeals of Rhetoric are as follows...
Ethos» 1.) The President!
Because Abraham Lincoln was the president at the time the speech was given, many people were prone to listen to him. Since mostly anything a president has to say to his fellow citizens is important, the people gave him respect as he spoke.
2.) “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”
»By starting his speech of with a statement such as this one, Abraham Lincoln establishes his credibility as soon as possible. His background knowledge lets everyone see that he knows a lot about, and at the same time feels strongly about, the history of our country.
Logos» 1.) “Now we are engaged in a great civil war …”
2.) “We are met on a great battlefield of that war.”
»With these statements, Lincoln tells the people of Gettysburg about the current situation the country was in. The hard facts of war add more of a reason for Lincoln's persuasion to acheive a new government with freedom for the people by the people.
Pathos» 1.) "The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.”
»Using words such as "brave" men and our "poor" power, help to emphasize how the men before us were much stronger and on a much higher level than the people at Gettysburg would ever be. These words play with the audience's emotions and gives them the feeling that they will never be as worthy as the soldiers before them, yet it is their duty to live on in their names.
Rhetorical Devices ...
Polysyndeton» 1.) "...so conceived and so dedicated..."
»The deliberate use of many conjunctions, to emphasize the drawn out quality of a set of issues.
Emphasizing how even a country like like ours which is so conceived and so dedicated can endure the hardships of war.
Anaphora» 1.) "...we cannot dedicate, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow..."
»The repition of the same word or group of words at the beginnings of successive sentences, clauses, or phrases.
Hearing "we cannot" 3 times in a row really emphasizes how crucial it is that we cannot do any of these things he is mentioning. Hearing the pattern of this phrase allows the reader to anticipate and expect what comes next.
Epistrophe» 1.) "...government of the people, by the people, for the people..."
»Like anaphora, except it is the repetition of the same word or group of words at the end of sentences, clauses, or phrases.
This emphasizes that the government we have now is for us and since it is run by us we are essentially the ones that can make a change to how it is being conducted. Therefore, we must step up and do our part in acheiving a new and better nation.
Hortative Sentences» 1.) "It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this."
2.) "It is for us the living... to be dedicated here..."
3.) "It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task..."
»Hortatve Sentences state that one should do something; a command.
The last section of his speech uses hortative sentences, trying to persuade the American people. Lincoln wants the people to get on the bandwagon and join him in the duty for their new nation.
Portraying the American Voice ...
President Abraham Lincoln did an excellent job in getting the American Voice across in the Gettysburg Address. America was admist the Civil War and Lincoln had concerns of creating a new birth of freedom within the nation and its government. With his credibility as the president of the United States and with his use of rhetorical devices, he persuaded America to join him in following the path that the soldiers had set before us in acheiving a free and fair government of the people, by the people, for the people.